"Well," said Giles awkwardly, shifting uncomfortably on the couch. "Er. How are you doing?"

"Good," Joyce stiffly replied without lifting her eyes from her magazine. Summers women weren't known for blushing, but he could detect a faint reddish tint to her cheeks. "Good. Um, I sold a few pieces to a wealthy patron recently."

"That's good," said Giles.

The awkward silence continued.

"Mom?" Buffy called. "Where's my machete?"

"You left it out on the dining room table again, sweetie, you're going to just have to use the mace," Joyce called back. "I don't appreciate you leaving your weapons out where someone could get hurt."

"Er, actually, Joyce, Buffy needs that for the demon we're facing tonight," Giles pointed out. Joyce looked up at him as if to respond, realized that she had inadvertently made eye contact with him, and immediately went back to feigning interest in her magazine.

"Yeah, see? Giles is on my side!" Buffy added, and there was the clatter of footsteps before she came into the room. "So where'd you leave it?"

"It's in my bedroom," Joyce answered, looking up at Buffy with a small smile and still avoiding looking at Giles. Buffy didn't notice this, as she was too busy rushing back up the stairs.

"Wealthy patron, you said?" Giles continued, making another stab at conversation. They were adults, after all. They could handle this…candy-induced encounter maturely and rationally.

"Yes, he was quite friendly," Joyce responded. "Very complimentary of the art we had out on display." She turned the page.

Giles steeled himself before deciding to address the elephant in the room. "Joyce," he said. "I truly don't want the events of months ago to permanently alter our friendship. You're Buffy's mother and I'm her Watcher, and it's important that we remain on good terms."

Except what actually came out of his mouth was, "So do you suppose we'll be having any more snow? It still is winter, after all."

Bloody brilliant.

"Yes," Joyce replied. "February. Valentine's Day coming up." She looked up, eyes suddenly wide and embarrassed. "Not that I was insinuating, you know—"

"Of course," Giles agreed.

"Because I wasn't."

"Yes."

The awkward silence resumed.

Buffy came in, wielding the machete cheerfully.

"Buffy, you aren't to hold it like that," said Giles, at the same time Joyce said, "Buffy, I don't want you breaking something with that."

"God, you guys are awful," Buffy complained. "I'm the Slayer. Sharp things are part of the job description. Can't you treat me like an adult?"

"You aren't an adult yet," Joyce reminded her.

"And your grip is off," Giles added. "Hold it like that and you will most likely break something."

Buffy sighed. "I'm gonna head out to slay the demon," she informed them. "I should be back in a few."

"Be careful," said Giles and Joyce in unison as she left the living room. Buffy didn't reply to this, only shouting a "Love you!" over her shoulder as the front door swung shut.

"I can only imagine her rolling her eyes at us right now," Joyce quipped.

"That, or she's making that face she gets when I tell her she's not doing something right," Giles commented, shifting on the couch a little to face Joyce.

She put down the magazine. "Yes! With the eye roll and the little sigh—"

"—and she crosses her arms—"

"Oh, right! I'd forgotten about the arm-crossing. I think she got that from me." Giles laughed in response, and Joyce smiled, a little uncertain but still cheerful. "Although I'm not sure where she picked up all of the sarcasm. Or the puns," she added.

"I'm sure Xander hasn't helped with the punning," Giles said. "That boy will make a joke out of the most horrific event." He smiled fondly. "He keeps Buffy's spirits up, I think."

"He got his hand stuck in the pickle jar when he came over after school yesterday," Joyce informed him. "And there were pickles still in it, so I had to figure out how to get his hand out without ruining the pickles."

"Are you truly that concerned about pickles?" Giles asked, half surprised and half teasing.

"Believe me, when you're feeding a growing Vampire Slayer, every little bit of food in the house becomes worth a lot," Joyce joked.

They chatted until Buffy came back.